The present invention relates to a cable connector and a method of connecting a cable connector and a cable.
For installation of electrical equipment in transport machines such as automobiles, computer wiring, and the like, cables having a variety of structures are used. Generally, cable connectors for connection between cables are provided.
For example, a cable connector comprises a cover insulator adapted to clamp an end portion of a cable and a base insulator having a terminal (contact) to be connected to another connector as a mating connector.
With this structure, the cable connector and the cable are connected by coupling the cover insulator and the base insulator and connecting the end portion of the cable and the terminal of the cable connector.
As a method of connecting the end portion of the cable and the terminal of the cable connector, a connecting method using a solder is known, for example, as described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (JP-A) No. 2004-192817 (Patent Document 1).
Specifically, as described in Patent Document 1, a central conductor (at the end portion of a cable) and the terminal are connected by the solder.
However, in the connecting method mentioned above, variation in an amount of the solder results in variation in cross sectional area of a connecting portion. In this event, impedance mismatch may be caused during high-speed transmission.
In view of the above, development is made of a connecting method using so-called laser welding. In this method, the cable is connected to the terminal by irradiating a laser beam directly to the connecting portion to melt the connecting portion.
In this case, the end portion of the cable and the terminal must be brought into tight contact with each other in advance. For this purpose, use is made of a structure in which the end portion of the cable and the terminal are pressed by an additional fixing member to be brought into tight contact with each other.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (JP-A) No. H07-211405 (Patent Document 2) discloses a connector having a structure in which a conductor at an end portion of a cable and a connecting terminal are pressed by an elastic member integrally formed with a housing portion.